


The Traitor

by horsefacesgf



Category: Shingeki no Kyojin | Attack on Titan
Genre: Action & Romance, Action/Adventure, Conflict, Death, Eventual Fluff, Eventual Smut, Lemon, Loss, Love, Mild Gore, Multi, Shingeki no Kyojin | Attack on Titan Manga Spoilers, Thriller
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-03-01
Updated: 2021-03-09
Packaged: 2021-03-13 01:00:17
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 6
Words: 12,033
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29768289
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/horsefacesgf/pseuds/horsefacesgf
Summary: From the age of five, Selene Mavros trained vigorously to become a warrior candidate for Marley. When she was chosen to inherit the War Hammer Titan, it was a great honor and it meant that she and her family had finally become honorary Marleyans- something she had worked for practically her entire life. But when she is chosen along with 4 other warriors to travel to Paradis and retake the Founding Titan, things take a change- and not necessarily for the better.
Relationships: Jean Kirstein/Original Female Character(s)
Kudos: 6





	1. The Journey

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi guys :) So I've decided to make a tiktok and post what Selene would look like, just to give you guys a better visual! It's posted on @jeankirsteinsgirlfrand if you wanna go check it out. Enjoy!

Laying on my back, I gazed up at the night sky above me. The stars sparkled and the air was fresh and smelled of campfire. The sound of my friends laughing around the fire filled my ears and I sat up on my sleeping bag, running a hand through my long, brunette hair. Glancing over at Annie, who had already laid down to sleep, I stood up and walked over to the campfire that Marcel had set up.

"Having fun over here, boys?" I mused, sitting down next to Marcel and snuggling against him. Marcel had been my best friend practically since we were born, our families living next to each other throughout all our lives. He rested his head on the top of mine while we watched Reiner and Bertolt, who were messing around and laughing. "We really should be careful with how loud we are out here. There's no telling who or what could be out here."

I felt Marcel nod in agreement, but the other two boys just continued to horse around.

"Guys!" I protested, huffing. 

"Selene, it's an open area, don't you think we'd see if someone or something was coming toward us?" Bertolt remarked, raising an eyebrow. "I think it's okay to let loose and have fun sometimes."

Reiner pitched in with him too. "Yeah, we have enough on our shoulders right now, isn't it okay if we just relax for a little? We'll make it to Paradis soon and who knows what'll happen, so what's the problem with enjoying ourselves now?"

"They have a point, I guess." Marcel spoke, shrugging softly.

Pouting, I stood up and walked back over to my sleeping bag, getting inside of it this time. "Fine, you three can do whatever you want, but just be quieter. I'm going to bed and Annie's already asleep, and I'd hate to see what would happen if you woke either of us up." I said grumpily, closing my eyes. They seemed to stay quiet, because I drifted off to sleep in a matter of minutes. 

I awoke to Annie shaking me gently. Groaning, I sat up and rubbed my eyes. The campfire from last night had gone out, and everyone else seemed to be awake and moving, packing up camp. Climbing out of my sleeping bag, I kneeled to roll it up while Annie and Marcel gathered the firewood we hadn't used. Bertolt was packing his own things as well while Reiner was facing us, putting his backpack full of supplies on his back.

Suddenly, the ground began to rumble, causing everyone to stumble around. I looked over at Marcel in confusion before I realized what was happening- a titan was standing up directly behind Reiner. My eyes widen as my brain began to race, thinking of how to act. 

"I could try and transform into my titan," I thought to myself frantically, "But the War Hammer takes a while to transform!" 

I watched in absolute horror as the titan took a step towards Reiner, it's beady brown eyes staring straight at him. It lunged at him and we all let out a scream, unsure of what to do. To my left, I saw something begin to move and suddenly Reiner was shoved to the side. The titan reached out with it's arm and grabbed- Marcel?

My breath caught in my throat as I watched the titan raise Marcel to it's ugly mouth. 

"MARCEL!" I cried, running towards the titan only to be grabbed by Annie. "Let me go!" I screamed, hitting Annie's arms with my fists, praying she would let go. But she didn't.

Bertolt ran over to Reiner, pulling him away from the titan and we all watched as Marcel was held in the titan's hand as it seemed to examine him. 

It's mouth opened as Marcel began to scream. Falling to my knees with Annie falling with me, I began to sob as I watched my best friend in the world approach his death. Suddenly, my vision was taken from me as Annie raised her hand over my eyes, burying her face into my shoulder. We heard horrid crunching noises as Marcel's screams faded away into silence.

When we opened our eyes again, Marcel and the titan were gone. We all sat there in silence, not knowing what to say or do.

"We have to go back to Marley." Bertolt whispered, his voice quivering. Annie and I nodded, agreeing. 

With tears still flowing from my eyes, I stood up, shaking from what I had just witnessed. "How.. how are we supposed to make it to the wall without Marcel? The plan was for Annie and Marcel to alternate carrying us all, and Annie can't do it on her own. There's no way." I said adamantly. Annie hummed in agreement. "We've got to go home."

Reiner looked up at the three of us, panicked. "We can't go home. We have to finish the mission," He said worriedly. 

Annie narrowed her eyes, looking angry. "Yeah. Because if we go home like this, without Marcel, they'll feed you and the Armored Titan to the next warrior for sure." Reiner's eyes widened in fear. "But that's your problem."

I looked away, biting my lip and making eye contact with Bertolt, who looked pale and sickly. I made my way over to him, wrapping an arm around his waist to steady him because it seemed that he might collapse at any second.

"How are you so sure it'll just be me? What makes you think that it won't be all four of us that they replace?" Reiner retorted, gaining some courage. 

This filled me with fire and I could feel my cheeks getting heated. "You killed Marcel." I hissed, venom dripping from my voice.

He glared at me now. "Oh, so you think that even if all four of us run away, they'll single me out to punish? How can you be certain that you won't be purged too? We won't be able to recover the Jaw. If they run away in titan form, none of our titans will be able to catch up!" Reiner spoke fervently, trying to convince us. 

Bertolt stirred from my side. "But learning the power takes a long-" He started before he was cut off by Reiner. 

"Says the guy who could use the Colossus right away!" Reiner yelled back, sweat dripping from his brow. Bertolt winced and I tightened my grip around him. "Don't you get it? There's no hope left for us! If we don't retrieve the Founder, we can't go home!"

I gritted my teeth, knowing what he was saying made sense, but still filled with rage. "You know what? If you'd even been one percent this composed this morning, we wouldn't have lost Marcel and the Jaw." I spit at him, glaring.

Annie then decided to speak up, strolling towards him staring daggers. "You'll threaten us just to save your own skin, is that it?" Suddenly, she kicked her foot up against Reiner's jaw and he was on the ground in a flash. My eyes widen and I felt Bertolt tense up.

She continued on, the anger searing in her voice. "You can be the one to explain this to Magath! 'It was all my fault!' Tell him!" Stomping her foot down on his face, she continued. "Screw your 'Honorary Marleyan' bullshit!" She yelled, continuing to step on him. "You're a chosen warrior? Marleyans and Eldians are both liars! All they think about is themselves!"

Reiner's face began to swell and there was blood everywhere as she continued to step on him with force over and over again.

"Annie, please-" Bertolt started before I cut him off. 

"Stop, Annie, this isn't going to get us anywhere-" I protested before she continued to talk to Reiner, ignoring the both of us.

She looked like a mad woman, her eyes wide, blood spattered on her face from Reiner. "I'm no different. I have to go back home alive! If you're really sorry, then die for me! Own up to your mistakes and die!" She finally kicked him over, stopping and catching her breath. For a moment, Reiner lay face down on the grass, unresponsive. She turned away, walking past Bertolt and I as we looked on in horror at what she had done.

Suddenly, Reiner stood up, eyes blank with his mouth open. In a split second he was on Annie, his arm wrapped around her throat holding her in a chokehold. "Reiner is dead." He whispered.

Annie's eyes filled with tears and horror as she struggled to get air. I stood there, supporting Bertolt, unable to move. Frozen in fear. And Bertolt seemed to be the same. Everything seemed to be in slow motion.

Reiner locked eyes with me from behind Annie, speaking directly with me now. "If you need Marcel, then I'll be Marcel." 

A single stream of tears came from my eyes as I stood there silently.

"Stop it already," Bertolt finally spoke with a shaky voice. 

"This is the only way for us to go home." Reiner continued, still holding Annie tightly in a chokehold as she struggled to get out of it. "We all.. have to.. go home..."

I ran towards them, taking hold of Reiner and forcing his arms off of Annie. She fell to the ground on her hands and knees, gasping for air as Bertolt ran to her side, kneeling next to her. I sat on the ground, closing my eyes to try and quiet my thoughts. Opening my eyes and standing back up, I looked at each one of the people I had trained with for many years, people I considered some of my closest friends. Reiner. Annie. Bertolt. I took a deep breath.

"If we're going to make it home, then we have got to make a plan to get to this wall and recover this stupid Founding Titan. Any ideas?"


	2. The Wall

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Annie, Selene, Bertolt and Reiner make a plan to reach the walls of Paradis.

"So?" I asked impatiently, looking around at my fellow warriors. "No one has any plans? Any thoughts about how the hell we could pull this off?" 

Bertolt cleared his throat, glancing up at me from his place on the ground next to Annie. "Well, Reiner and I won't be able to travel long distances at all in our Titan forms. Plus, it's essential that we're well rested, since we're the ones who are going to have to break through the walls. Annie is important because she has to use her Titan to call other titans and control them so that they go into the walls once we breach it, so we can't have her running us the entire way. Selene, you're supposed to help break the walls, but since I have Reiner, it's not as important that you help, too."

"So we have Annie carry us over halfway, since her Titan is so fast, and then have Selene's Titan carry us the rest of the way so that Annie can rest." Reiner pitched in, brows furrowed in thought.

I nodded. "The War Hammer is fast, but doesn't have much stamina which is why I agree it's a good idea that Annie carry us most of the way. If she can do that much, I can go the rest and lead the titans toward the wall while you two-" My eyes shifted between Bertolt and Reiner. "-break through the wall." I held out a hand to Annie and she took it, standing up.

"Alright." Annie spoke, bringing the blade on her ring out. "Let's do this, then." 

Nodding solemnly, the boys and I retreated to a safe distance while Annie used her ring to cut her finger. Shielding my eyes from the light coming from her transformation, I winced at the brightness of it before looking up and seeing Annie's Female Titan hovering over us. 

She lowered her hand, which we climbed on, then placed us on her shoulder. As we all grabbed on to Annie's Titan, securing our spots, I looked over at Bertolt and Reiner with a soft smile on my lips. "To Paradis it is, then." 

"To Paradis," Reiner responded, returning my smile. 

Bertolt just looked forward, with a stern look on his face. "Let's just get this over with so that we can go home."

And with that, the Female Titan began running in the direction of the wall. 

After what felt like hours of Annie running, I tugged on her Titan's hair. She had been running all through the night, and the sun was beginning to rise. "Annie, we should stop so you can rest." 

With that, the Female Titan slowed to a stop and held out her hand, which we all climbed on. Once we reached the ground, the Titan kneeled, and steam came from her nape as Annie popped out, disconnecting herself from the muscle attachments. She climbed down sluggishly, no doubt exhausted from the hours she had been exerting her Titan. I held out my hand to her and she took it, stepping down onto the ground. I helped her roll out her sleeping bag and she collapsed onto it, closing her eyes immediately.

"We should all rest," Bertolt suggested. "During the day, titans are active, so one person needs to stay up to keep watch. We can go in shifts. At night, we should start moving again. We want it to be night when we get to the wall, because the titans are inactive and it'll be harder for anyone to spot us."

Reiner hummed in agreement. "We should remain pretty far away from the wall once we get there, but close enough to where it's at least in eyesight. From there, Annie can use her Titan to call other titans to follow us, and then Selene can use the War Hammer to carry us the rest of the way. I'd say we sleep today, travel tonight, and we should be at the wall by tomorrow."

My heart fluttered at the thought. The walls of Paradis. Growing up, I was never really sure that they were even real, let alone that I'd ever see them. My cheeks flushed with rage. The people in those walls were responsible for all the suffering that my friends and family had gone through. They were the reason that Eldians were considered devils. Why we had to wear armbands in Marley. Why kids like me worked their asses off from young ages to become a warrior- to die- just so that we could be considered honorary Marleyans. Just so we could be seen as good people. I clenched my fists, blood boiling. And now Marcel had died. For what? For someone else's war that had been started years before we were born? Before our parents were born? Our grandparents? 

"I'll take first watch," Reiner offered, sitting against a tree. 

I shook my head. "No, you've been through a lot lately. I'll take it." I insisted.

Reiner shook his head back, crossing his arms. Stubborn as ever. "We all have. I'm taking it, Selene. You've got to rest for tomorrow, so that your Titan can get us the rest of the way to the wall. I promise that if I get tired, I'll wake someone up to take watch instead."

I rolling my eyes, I walked over to where Annie was laying and rolled my sleeping bag out next to hers. I looked over to see that Bertolt had already laid down on his sleeping bag, eyes wide as he stared at the sky. I could tell that he was thinking about tomorrow, about breaking the wall, about what it meant. He had never really wanted any part of this- none of us really did. But we had no choice but to carry out what we were sent to do. Otherwise, we could never go home. 

"Bertolt?" I said softly. "Are you alright?"

He continued looking at the sky, breathing deeply. "The air is so clean here." He murmured. "Nothing like the Liberio internment camp. Like what our family and friends are breathing right now."

I fell silent, breathing in the air, feeling my lungs inflate. It was intoxicating.

"So many people will die tomorrow." Bertolt said, a slight tremor in his voice. "And they'll die because we- I- killed them," He said quietly. "But isn't it better that they die so my family can live? So that yours can? So that my mother doesn't have to wake up in the morning, wondering what will get thrown at her that day? So my father doesn't have to endure slurs thrown at him by Marleyans? Isn't it better this way, that the people of Paradis suffer so that the Eldians in Liberio don't have to any longer?" 

Biting my lip, I scrambled for a response. "Bertolt, I don't-" 

He cut me off, sighing. "Selene, our world is cruel. And it always will be. There will always be a villain in the story, but the villain will change depending on who's telling it." He rolled over, his back facing me. "Go to sleep."

I sat with what he had said for a moment, shivering at the truth of his words before laying down on my sleeping bag and closing my eyes, drifting off to sleep.

Reiner was kneeling next to me, softly whispering my name as I woke up. My eyes fluttered open, looking around to see that Annie was still sleeping and Bertolt seemed to be on watch. Of course they hadn't woken me up to take watch- they believed since they were the boys, they were in charge of 'taking care' of Annie and I, something that irked both of us. 

"I figured it might be better if you woke Annie up," Reiner said quietly. "You're probably the only one she wouldn't attack. But it's time to start moving. The sun set about 30 minutes ago, and if we get moving now, we'll be able to breach the wall tomorrow."

Nodding, I sat up while Reiner retreated to collect what supplies we had left. Looking to the sleeping girl beside me, I placed my hand on her shoulder and shook her gently. "Annie..?" 

I gasped as she spun around, grabbing my wrist with her eyes wide, making a fist with her other hand. I winced, shielding my face with my other arm. 

"It's just me!" I said quickly, bracing myself for a punch. Finally, she registered that it was me and lowered the fist. I took a deep breath. 

Letting out a nervous laugh, I moved away from her slightly. "That was a close one, Annie."

"Sorry, Selene." She said. "Thought you were one of those idiots," Annie motioned over to the boys, who were standing underneath the tree.

"Hey!" They both protested at the same time. Laughing together, Annie and I stood up.

"So, apparently it's time to start moving again. Reiner says we should be able to breach the walls by tomorrow if we get moving now." I told her. 

She huffed, rolling her eyes. "Yeah, if he has any idea what he's talking about. Which, he probably doesn't." 

Flipping the blade on her ring out again, she gave the rest of us time to move away safely before cutting her finger, transforming into the Female Titan again. Once we were all safely on her shoulders, she began to run in the supposed direction of the wall again, all of us clinging to her tightly.


	3. Breakthrough

The sky was bursting with brilliant colors, streaks of red, orange and yellow as the sun began to rise. We had once again ran through the night, and the wall was in our sights now. Even from as far away as we were, I could tell just how tall it was. 

"What a bunch of cowards," I seethed as Annie's Titan slowed to a stop. "Hiding behind a wall. Ignoring all the wrong they've done to the rest of the world. Why do they deserve to lead happy lives?"

Silence filled the air with everyone unable to formulate a response. The Female Titan huffed, with Annie inside. No doubt she was utterly exhausted. 

"I'd say it'll take a few hours to reach the wall from here." Reiner guessed. "If Annie can call the other titans now, we could get moving and start the breach by this afternoon. Are you ready, Selene?" He asked, looking over at me. A chill ran down my spine as I nodded.

"I guess even if I said I wasn't ready, I still really wouldn't have a choice." I replied. "Annie, if you could call the other titans here now, I can transform and wait for them to get close before taking us the rest of the way to the wall."

The Female Titan turned her head, looking at the three of us on her shoulder as if to warn us. We raised our hands, covering our ears as she let out a shrill cry. Reiner, Bertolt and I cried out in pain from the noise- covering our ears didn't help much, but it needed to be done. With that, Annie lowered us down to the ground, exiting her Titan after. The ground began to shake as titans from all direction headed to our location, listening to Annie's cry. I took a deep breath, looking at my friends. 

"I'd back up now if I were you guys," I warned and they all nodded. Closing my eyes and breathing once more through my nose, I attempted to compose myself before bringing my hand up and biting it, triggering my transformation into the War Hammer. 

The feeling of transforming was one that would never get old to me. Feeling the body of the Titan forming around me, enveloping me in its nape. The muscles attaching to my limbs and my face before finally, I wasn't seeing through my own eyes, but from those of my Titan. It almost felt like a dream state, but also vividly real at the same time. I can still remember the first time I transformed- the feeling was unlike any other, my senses heightened. I turned, looking down at Annie, Bertolt and Reiner on the ground, who, to me, looked like the size of ants. 

Standing at 15 meters tall, my War Hammer was lean and white in color, an athletic body that did not look male nor female. With a thin layer of white casing on its whole body, the skin underneath was only visible on the neck and face, but through slots in the white layer. I could form structures made from Titan flesh, such as a hammer to use for destruction, or spikes sticking out of the ground. Another feature unique to my Titan was that I did not need to be in the nape to control it- I could put myself into a crystal-like structure outside of the Titan's body yet stull control it by using a connection made of Titan flesh between the body of the Titan and the crystal. This wasn't something I chose to do often, however, because if the connection were severed, my Titan would become useless. Unlike most of the other warriors, aside from Pieck or Zeke, my Titan had the ability to talk, which I was thankful for. 

I lowered my hand down to my friends, glancing around to see titans coming in from the left and the right. "Climb up," I spoke, my Titan's voice rumbling. They did so, and I used the War Hammer's ability to harden a safe place for them to rest on my shoulder, encasing them in so that there was no possibility of anyone falling out. With that, I began to run straight for the wall, trying to pace myself so that I wouldn't wear out too early. I began to create a rhythm with my feet hitting the earth, the sound of titans behind me growing increasingly louder as I heard more of them assemble behind me. 

For hours I continued to run straight for the wall, watching in anticipation as it came closer and closer into view. Suddenly, I saw what appeared to be a small group of people on horseback appear in front of me, waving swords and shouting, pointing towards me. They seemed to be dressed in green cloaks with some sort of winged symbol. 

"Shit," I thought to myself. "There weren't supposed to be people out this far." 

Suddenly, the group was flying through the air towards me, with swords in hand. Stopping in my tracks, I reached out and grabbed one with my hand, crushing them instantly as they cried out. I knew that I'd have to make this quick, because the hoard of titans were gaining on us quickly. I focused on forming a hammer out of the titan's flesh, watching it grow in my hands as the remaining people used what seemed to be cables to connect to my Titan's skin, swinging their swords and attempting to cut into its flesh. Hardening the part on my shoulder with Reiner, Annie and Bertolt in it, I swung the hammer at the people flying through the air, making contact with two and smashing them against the ground, looking around for the last person. I finally spotted them, running away on horseback towards the wall. 

"Where are you going?" I said aloud to them, which seemed to startle them as they let out a yell and began riding faster. I began to run behind them. "Surely you know that I can't let you reach the wall," My Titan said, reaching down and grabbing the person when I was an arm's length away. I brought them up to my face, studying them. "I hope you understand." Nonchalantly, I began to tighten my grip as they screamed, beating their fists on my hand before I heard a crunch and they stopped moving. Dropping their body to the floor, I began to head towards the wall again with the titans close behind. 

Finally, after what seemed like forever, we had made it to the wall. Making a hole in the hardened casing I was keeping my friends in, I allowed Reiner and Bertolt to climb down before closing the casing back up, allowing Annie to rest as I retreated away from the two of them as they transformed. Bertolt's Colossal Titan peered over the wall and I heard the people inside scream in horror as he used his Titan's foot to begin kicking the wall in. 

"This is really happening." I thought to myself in disbelief. "We made it to Paradis and we're kicking the wall in. This is what we've been training for." I watched as Reiner broke through the hole that Bertolt had made, with titans following him through. Making my way over to the Colossal, I watched as Bertolt came out of his nape and held my hand up for him, allowing him to get on my shoulder and in the hardened casing with Annie. Everything so far was going smoothly and according to plan. I stepped through the wall, using my Titan's ability to form a hammer as I looked around for Reiner. 

The devastation was immense. Looking around, I saw rocks and debris scattering everywhere. There were destroyed buildings and corpses littering the street and the sound of screaming was coming from every direction as the citizens of Paradis were being devoured by the titans that we had let in. Finally, I spotted Reiner, heading for yet another wall. I began to run after him, hammer in hand. Swinging the hammer back, I hit the other wall with all the force I had while Reiner's Armored Titan busted through the same spot, creating a large hole. 

"We did it," I thought to myself. "We actually broke through the wall." I felt myself getting woozy, my Titan falling to its knees as my vision went blurry and then dark.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Imagine Selene's War Hammer Titan's appearance as the one in the anime/manga. :)


	4. Wall Rose

Holding my head with my hand, my eyebrows furrowed as I sat up. My body was sore and fatigued and my head was pounding. Looking to my left, I noticed that Reiner and Bertolt were kneeling next to me, and to my right, Annie was laying on a pallet, looking dazed. 

"Where are we?" I questioned, looking around. It seemed we were in a hut with multiple other people, all of whom seemed to be talking to one another, the volume of voices relatively high.

Bertolt glanced around quickly, before looking at Reiner, who nodded. "I don't think anyone will be able to hear us, it's so loud in here. Everyone is in a panicked state."

"We're in Wall Rose, according to these people. We're all refugees here. From what I can tell, the first wall we broke through was an outside wall, and it held the Shiganshina District. The second wall was Wall Maria, an inner wall." Reiner explained. "Selene, as soon as we breached Wall Maria, you and your Titan gave out. I guess you over-exerted yourself with running the rest of the wall, generating the capsule that held us on your shoulder and generating a hammer twice. You need to be careful with that next time," He said, sounding concerned.

I rolled my eyes. "Save the scolding, Reiner, we completed the mission and we're all here. We're all alive. And I don't think any of us will be transforming for a while until we can figure out how to get the Founding Titan." I huffed, continuing on. "Plus, I'm the one who's trained to use the War Hammer, I know my limits."

Bertolt bit his lip before taking a breath, looking at me. "Look, Selene, none of us question your ability at all. It's just, when you collapsed yesterday, you still had Annie and I on your shoulder. If there hadn't have been an opening in the casing and Reiner hadn't have been there, who knows what could have happened? Someone could have seen us or we could have gotten hurt. It was pure luck that no one saw AND that none of us were hurt. It's just, I care about all of you, and I want us to stay alive." He sighed. "But you're right, we made it through. One step closer to home."

"What do we do now?" Annie asked.

******Two Years Later******

I stood still in a line as the drill instructor, Keith Shadis, walked through the rows of recruits. My body felt tense as he passed by, inspecting each person. Myself, and about everyone else, jumped when he finally began to talk.

"Hey," Shadis yelled. "Moptop!" He was looking at a blonde boy who was standing directly to the left of me.

The boy brought his fist to his chest, saluting the drill instructor. "Sir." He replied steadily.

"What do they call you, maggot?" Shadis continued, insulting the boy as he stood in front of him.

The boy replied without hesitation. "Armin Arlert, from Shiganshina, sir."

I felt my eyes widen as I recognized the name, Shiganshina. Two years ago, Reiner, Annie, Bertolt and I breached the walls and probably killed many people that Armin had known, maybe even his family. I shuddered. 

I was snapped out of my thoughts as the drill instructor continued, mocking Armin. "Wow, seriously? Why would your parents curse you with such a dumb name?"

"It was my grandfather, sir." Armin replied, still not missing a beat. I was impressed at how he was replying so effortlessly.

"Cadet Arlert. Why is a runt like you here?" Shadis questioned. Why could he not just leave the poor boy alone?

Armin straightened up his posture. "To help humanity overcome the titans!" He said with confidence. At this, Shadis straightened his posture up, clearly either confused or surprised at Armin's response. 

"That is delightful to hear," The drill instructor replied. "You're gunna be a great light snack for them. Row three, about face." He commanded. 

My row turned as Shadis walked away, looking for his next target. I let out a breath, trying to calm my nerves as I heard Shadis begin to yell again after he had selected his next target. I jumped as the Armin reached out and touched my arm lightly before bringing it back to his side. I looked at him out of the corner of my eye, scared to turn my head in case the drill instructor was watching, even though I could see him yelling at a short, black haired girl with pig tails who stated her name was Mina Carolina.

"Relax, are you okay? I can see that you're shaking." Armin said quietly, careful to keep his voice down so Shadis couldn't hear him. 

I nodded, swallowing. "I'm fine."

He seemed satisfied with my response, so we both went back to staring straight ahead, waiting to move on from being antagonized. Staring blankly, I listened to Shadis pick on and yell at multiple different cadets, learning the names of some as he'd pass by. However, I noticed that when it came to some of the cadets, he would walk by without saying much of anything. Namely, Annie, Reiner, Bertolt and I, as well as a black haired boy and a girl with a red scarf around her neck. It must seem like we'd seen too much already to be intimidated by him.

"Hey, you there.." Shadis spoke in a normal tone, which caught my attention after he had been yelling for what felt like forever. He walked over, approaching a girl who seemed to be- eating? My eyes widened at this, knowing there was no possible way that it was going to end well. "What do you think you're doing?" 

She looked around, as if unaware that he were talking to her, while continuing to eat what looked like a potato. She brought it up to her mouth and took another bite, which seemed to really trigger the drill instructor as he was on her and up in her face in a split second.

"You are officially on my shit list!" He screamed at her. "Just who in the hell are you?"

The girl swallowed, seemingly unfazed as she saluted, the potato still in her fist. "Sasha Braus from Dauper Village at your service! Reporting for duty, sir!" 

At this point, I thought I could practically see steam coming from Shadis' ears as he glared at the girl in front of him. "Sasha Braus, huh?"

Armin glanced over at me, biting his lip. "I have a feeling that this isn't going to go well for Sasha," He remarked and I nodded in agreement.

"What kind of an idiot would be eating a potato while we're all lined up like this? Plus, where did she even get it I wonder?" Giggling softly, I waited until Shadis was done screaming in the poor girl's face.

Shadis stood in front of all of the cadets, crossing his arms. "This has been a waste of time, talking to you pathetic cadets. I've had enough of it today. Go eat and get ready for bed. Training starts early in the morning, and I expect to see all of your dumb faces there. Cadets, dismissed." 

With that, we all saluted him, a fist to our hearts, before we walked off in our rows to the mess hall.

Standing on the front porch with Armin and a few other cadets, we all watched as Sasha ran laps for having the potato.

"Man, I thought Shadis was gunna kill potato girl," said one of the cadets, a boy with freckles across his face.

The black haired boy from earlier nodded. "I know. Hell of a first day," He said. "It's funny, being told to run until the sun sets didn't seem to bother her nearly as much as losing meal privileges for the next five days." 

A boy who I had learned was named Connie decided to speak up. "I think she said she's from Dauper. If I remember right, that's a small hunting village up in the mountains."

Just then, a wagon full of people went past the porch, all of them with solemn looks on their faces.

"Hey, what's that?" Asked the boy with black hair.

"They're cadets who couldn't make it through today. They would rather work in the fields than become a soldier." Armin explained to a confused Eren. 

"So that's his name," I thought to myself. "Eren." I turned around, walking towards the mess hall door, ready to eat and check in with Annie, Bertolt and Reiner. Stepping inside, I was surprised to see how many cadets there truly were. Being inside with everyone put everything into perspective. Getting my food and looking around for my group, I furrowed my eyebrows to see that there was no room at the table with them. I locked eyes with Bertolt, who looked apologetic as I huffed.

Just then, the boy with the freckles tapped my shoulder, and I turned around to look at him after he did so. "You can come sit with me, if you want to..?" 

"Selene," I offered with a smile. "And I'd love to come and sit with you...?"

He beamed, his face lighting up. "Marco!" He walked over toward a table with another boy already sitting and patted the table across from him. I sat down, grateful that Marco had offered a spot for me. The other boy looked at me, his cheeks turning a soft pink before he went back to his meal, trying to play it off. 

I raised an eyebrow, looking at Marco. He glanced between me and the other boy, clearing his throat.

"What's your name?" He asked the boy sitting at our table in silence. 

The boy sighed, running a hand through his short, ash brown hair. "Jean."

Marco, cheery as ever, gave another one of his contagious smiles. "Nice to meet you, Jean. I'm Marco, and this is Selene." 

Jean seemed to relax a little, looking up at the both of us. "What brings you two here as cadets? If you even have half a brain, it's to join the Military Police." He stated.

"Yeah! I want to join the Military Police and serve the King. I want to protect the citizens and keep everyone in the walls safe and happy." Marco exclaimed, taking a bite of his food. Jean turned his head to look at me, as if waiting to see what my answer would be.

"Oh, me?" I asked as Marco began to look at me too. "I'm wanting to be in the Military Police, too." 

Surprisingly, Jean let out a smile. "Good. I'm glad you two aren't idiots like most others here. Beating the titans and saving humanity? It's impossible. A waste of time. I want to be living a good life in the inner walls where it's safe." 

"Yeah, why would anyone actually choose to fight titans?" I questioned, looking at Jean. "To me, it just doesn't really make any sense."

Just then, a table near by started to be surrounded by cadets. Glancing over, I noticed that Eren was sitting at the table, talking loudly. "Yeah, okay. I saw the big guy."

I felt my eyes widen as I realized he was talking about Bertolt- the Colossal Titan. I took a minute to compose myself before I realized Jean was still looking right at me. Marco had gotten up to hurry over and listen to Eren. 

"Selene, relax. The Colossal disappeared that day and no one has seen it since. You don't need to look so scared." Jean said, seemingly annoyed. 

My cheeks flushed pink as I nodded, embarrassed that he had been watching me, but also thankful that he had mistaken my emotions as me being scared. 

Keeping our secret might be a little harder than I thought it was going to be.


	5. Training

I finished eating my food, trying to seem unfazed as the table Eren sat at became more and more crowded by cadets wanting to hear about his spotting of the Titans from Shiganshina. I quickly glanced over at Bertolt, Annie and Reiner, who were continuing on with dinner, ignoring the commotion just like I was.

"Okay, exactly how tall was he?" A brown haired boy asked excitedly. 

Eren shrugged, holding a spoon full of stew in one hand. "He stuck his head over the outer wall."

My eyes shifted from my food to look up at Jean, whose chin was in one of his hands as he turned his head to listen to the conversation at the table next to us. More curious cadets began to speak up and I huffed, taking a drink of my water.

"Woah, wait! I heard he stepped over the wall completely," one said, and others nodded, confirming they had heard the same. 

I felt weird, overhearing what they were talking about. Knowing that I was sitting amongst my victims, some who had their families and friends killed that day we broke the wall two years ago. I felt myself shiver, thinking about the devastation that my fellow warriors had caused that day. Sometimes, when I dreamt at night, I still saw the bodies scattered on the streets of Shiganshina, still heard the screams of the Eldians being devoured by the titans we had let in. 

"There were others, too." Eren continued, snapping me out of my thoughts. Jean didn't seem to notice that I had tensed up as he continued to listen to the conversation. "There was the Armored Titan, but then there was another, too. One that held a hammer that it made out of its own flesh. It helped break the wall with the Armored." 

My eyes widen as he mentioned my Titan, and I bit my lip, looking down at my plate and pretending to finish what little food was left on it. I felt like everyone was looking at me all of a sudden- like everyone had discovered my secret. But when I glanced around quickly, not a single person was looking my way. I let out a soft sigh of relief. I noticed as Jean shifted his body weight, looking annoyed at Eren's words as he continued talking about how the titans weren't a big deal and that humanity could beat them, announcing that he'd be joining the Scouts.

"Hey, are you crazy or something?" Jean asked Eren, and everyone fell quiet. I saw as the black haired boy's eyes widen as he moved his head to look at Jean. "Not that it's my business, but signing up for reconnaissance is like a death sentence."

Eren put his spoon back into his bowl then placed both his palms on the table, pushing himself to his feet. "I guess we'll see." Eren said, his eyes narrowing as he responded. "Or at least, I will. You seem content hiding in the interior with the MPs."

Jean scoffed at this, smirking. "Look, I'm just speaking honestly here, kid. I think it's better than being some loud mouthed braggart tough-guy wannabe pretending he's not as piss-scared as the rest of us." He lifted his chin out of his hand and seemed surprised as Eren took his hands off the table, now standing and facing Jean.

"Are you trying to pick a fight?" Eren said with his teeth gritted. 

Just then, Marco decided to step in. "Stop it you guys!" He exclaimed, the conflict clearly making him upset. 

The two boys ignored Marco's pleas and Jean stood up, shrugging at Eren's suggestion. "Alright, sure. Makes no difference to me."

I stood up, making eye contact with Marco who looked worried. Just as I was about to step in, a bell rang from outside, dismissing us from dinner to get ready for bed. Marco placed a hand on Jean's shoulder, and Jean relaxed immediately. 

He sighed, looking down at Eren as he was a couple of inches taller. "Hey. I apologize. Sorry for calling you names and dismissing your choice of career." He held out his hand to the shorter boy. "Put 'er there, kid. Whaddya say?" 

Eren's eyes narrowed once again, and for a moment, I thought he may try to swing. However, his posture became more relaxed too, and he took Jean's hand, shaking it. "Right. Yeah, I'm sorry as well."

I rolled my eyes, deciding I had enough of this and was ready for bed. I stood up from the table, pulling my long hair out of my ponytail. Running my hands through it as it fell down my back, I began to follow the girl with the red scarf out of the mess hall. As I followed the girl out, I heard someone call out from behind me. 

"Uhm, excuse me?" It said, and I turned. It was Jean. My eyebrows knit in confusion as I looked at him. His cheeks flushed red as he looked at me, studying my face. "I.. Uh. I just wanted-- I mean... the lights were kind of dark during dinner so I couldn't really see you and now I can and I.. I just haven't seen anyone like you before. I mean, uh..." His voice trailed off as he cleared his throat. "I'm-- I'm sorry. You have really beautiful brown hair." He remarked, looking down at the ground sheepishly before locking eyes with me again.

I felt my face grow hot as I looked back at him. "Thanks," I replied, turning away before he could see that I was blushing and following the girl with the red scarf, jogging to catch up with her. "Hey," I said to her, now walking by her side.

"Hi," She replied with a soft voice, wrapping her scarf another time around her neck, her long black hair flowing with the wind. 

"I like your scarf," I complimented. "What's your name?" 

The girl smiled, looking over at me. "Mikasa, what's yours?" She looked forward again, focusing on Eren who was still walking ahead of us.

"Selene," I replied. "Do you know Eren?" 

She nodded as we caught up to him, now walking alongside him, with Mikasa in the middle of us. 

Eren, who seemed to know that Mikasa was going to scold him, started talking before she even got the chance to. "Would you lay off? It's no big deal!" 

"It's just that you get so worked up that you don't think things through," Mikasa started. I realized that they were having what I assumed was a private conversation.

I looked over at Mikasa, smiling again. "Well, I'll let you two talk," I offered. "It was nice to meet you!" She smiled and nodded and I walked off, hearing them begin to talk again as I walked off. Stepping into the barracks, I noticed Annie over in the corner, laying on a bottom bunk with the girl who I recognized as Mina on the bunk above her. I took the bottom bunk of the beds next to Annie, sighing as I laid down. She looked over at me and her eyes lit up when she recognized it was me. 

Annie was the cynical type, usually standoffish and quiet, even mostly rude to everyone, but to me, she was like my sister and best friend all in one. We had grown up together, and Reiner and Bertolt often joked that I was literally the only person on the planet that Annie actually liked.

Annie laid on her side, facing me. "How was today for you?" She asked, resting her head on her pillow. 

I moved onto my side, looking at her, feeling my heart flutter with relief and joy at finally getting to see and talked to Annie. "It went pretty well, it was weird not getting to talk to you all day." I looked up and noticed that Mina was looking down from her bed, obviously listening to what we were saying. I quickly glanced at Annie and back up at Mina, letting her know that she was listening.

"Do you two know each other? Are you sisters?" Mina asked, looking down at us with a smile on her face.

I froze for a second before thinking of a response. "Uh, no, we aren't sisters! Annie and I are from a small mountain village on the southeast side of Wall Maria." Annie nodded as Mina's eyes widened.

"So.. did you..?" Mina started, and it was obvious what she was asking.

"Yeah," Annie replied. "We saw the titans. Our village didn't even know that they were coming or what was happening because it's so small. No one warned us, so practically our entire village was killed. We were lucky to make it out."

Just as Mina was about to reply, the girl who had been eating the potato earlier and punished by Shadis, Sasha, was stumbling over to our area, another girl with freckles holding her up. "Is this bed taken?" The girl asked.

"Uh, no. She can have it," I replied and she nodded, helping Sasha onto the bed on top of mine. Looking over at Annie and Mina, I smiled. "Anyways, we made it out and now we're here. It's all that matters. Goodnight, guys!" I said cheerily as I turned to lay on my back, pulling the covers over my body. After a few moments, all of the girls were settled and the lights were turned off, and I drifted off to sleep.

I awoke when the lights were turned on, to Keith Shadis yelling at us all to 'get our lazy asses up and out of bed' for training that day. Wiping the sleep out of my eyes and stretching, I swung my feet to the side of the bed, letting them dangle over the side. Annie sat across from me. "Good morning," I said, yawning.

"Morning," Annie replied. Mina poked her head over the side of her bed, repeating Annie. I got off the bed and looked at the girl sleeping on the bed over mine. Sasha was still fast asleep, drool pooling on the bed. I shook her gently, knowing if she didn't wake up and come out with us to train, she'd get in more trouble. She groaned, swatting my hands away. 

"Sasha," I whispered, continuing to shake her. "Wake up before Shadis comes back!"

Her eyes snapped open at the mention of the drill instructor's name and she sat up quickly. "I'm awake!" She exclaimed, practically falling off the bed as she came down the ladder. When all the girls were awake, we all walked out of our barracks as a group, the boys already out and standing out front. 

"Good, the girls finally decided to join us," Shadis said sarcastically. "Follow me, cadets." The group followed the instructor as he walked over to metal tripod looking things. Mikasa stood next to me in the crowd, leaning over towards me.

"I think it's to practice using ODM gear," She whispered, as if she just knew I was confused with what I was looking at. I nodded, though I had no idea what ODM gear was. Marley had no such technology- I had never heard of it before. 

Shadis continued, yelling even though I was pretty sure it wasn't necessary. "It's aptitude test time, so listen up! There is no place for you here if you can't perform!" He stated sharply, and I felt my heart drop. I hoped that whatever ODM gear was, that it was easy to use. "Fail, and be shipped off to the field." He continued. 

We were all given belts that connected to cords hanging from the tripod. I watched as cadets went before me, some being able to stay upright, but some also unable to do so. Finally, it was my turn, along with Mikasa, Eren, and Armin. We all walked up to our own individual tripods, connecting our belts to the cords on both sides. Once we were all connected, we were lifted up, and I felt the strain in my body as I struggled to stay upright. Looking to my right, Mikasa was completely still and composed, dangling in the cables, making it look effortless. Armin was wobbling slightly like I was, but able to stay steady. I took a breath, tightening my core and shifting my body weight to balance, staying upright. 

Shadis walked in front of all of us, seemingly impressed with Mikasa. He passed by me and moved to Eren, who was on my left.

"What is your major malfunction, Jaeger?" The drill instructor asked. I looked over to see Eren completely upside down, unable to handle staying upright in the ODM gear. "Straighten yourself up!"

I really felt bad for him in that moment as everyone began to stare at him, all the cadets falling silent as he struggled to make himself upright. I noticed as a boy in the crowd began to laugh and I felt my face get hot in anger. 

"Shut up!" I yelled at the boy, and his eyes widened as he stopped laughing. When we were finally lowered down, Mikasa and Armin ran over to Eren, helping him up and comforting him as his eyes were wide and it looked like he may burst into tears. I walked back into the crowd, seeing Reiner and Bertolt. 

"Hey, you two." I said, smiling, and they returned a smile back.

"Hey, Selene!" Bertolt said, wrapping an arm around my shoulders as I leaned into his side. Reiner put an arm around me as well, which sandwiched me in between the two of them.

"Standing up for Jaeger, huh?" Reiner asked. "I didn't really expect you to make friends so fast," He admitted. "Especially with why we're here." He whispered so that no one else would hear. 

I shrugged. "I felt like I should. I know how it feels to be put on the spot like that, to have everyone watch you as you fail. We all do." 

They both nodded and the bell rung as we were dismissed to lunch. I sat with Annie, Bertolt and Reiner, enjoying the time I had to catch up with them as we all talked about how training had been going. 

Once lunch was over, the sun was setting, the sky alight with beautiful oranges, reds and yellows. I looked over towards the ODM tripods, seeing Mikasa and Armin trying to help Eren, but failing. I watched as he fell over, hitting his head on the ground. I felt bad for him as I watched him unclip himself, with Mikasa and Armin accompanying him to the nurse because he was bleeding from hitting his head on the floor. 

The other cadets and I were all instructed to do more drills, mostly hand to hand combat with other cadets. After a few hours of doing this, it was time for dinner. This time, I decided to sit with Sasha, Mina, the freckled girl who had helped Sasha, who I found out was named Ymir, and a short blonde girl with big blue eyes named Krista. 

Throughout dinner, I could feel someone staring at me, and when I looked, my eyes widen as I noticed it was Jean. As we locked eyes, his face flushed and he looked away quickly. Marco noticed and looked over at me, laughing and smiling. I shook my head, smiling back at him before turning my head and getting back into the conversation with the girls I was sitting with. 

Out of the corner of my eye, I noticed that Eren, Mikasa and Armin were sitting at their own table and it was clear that Eren was worried. I could hear as some other boys were talking about him, saying he'd be sent to the fields. 

"What did you guys think about the drills today?" I asked the girls, eating my food. 

Krista smiled, beaming. "I think it was fun! ODM gear isn't so hard to use after all. Right, Ymir?" 

The freckled girl looked up from her food, a blank look on her face. "Yeah. Fun." She muttered.

"I was just waiting all day for this food. Who cares about training," Sasha said with her mouth full of food. Mina, Krista and I all giggled, and even Ymir cracked what I thought might be a tiny smile. 

Mina took a bite of her food. "I liked learning more about the hand to hand combat," She told us. "I can't wait to learn more moves so that I can practice them." I nodded in agreement.

"Hand to hand combat is pretty fun, especially when you're the one who wins the training match." I said and we all laughed again. 

After a little while of absentminded chatter, getting to know the girls I was sitting with better, the bell rang again to dismiss us to get ready for bed. We all stood up, taking our plates, cups and silverware and returning them to the kitchen to be cleaned. Walking out of the mess hall, I took a deep breath, the air fresh and clean. Something I wasn't sure I'd ever get used to. Returning to the barracks, I sat down on my bed. Across the isle was Mikasa's bed, and she sat on it, looking at the floor. She seemed upset, so I approached her and sat next to her on her bed.

"Hey, Mikasa," I said softly. "Are you doing okay?" I looked over at her as she bit her lip, eyes downcast.

Finally, she shook her head. "No. What am I going to do if Eren can't get the hang of the ODM gear? That will mean that he has to go to the fields, and then, so do I."

I cocked my head, confused. "Why does it mean that you have to go too?"

She sighed. "I promised his mom that I'd take care of him. I would never want to leave him, anyways. We practically grew up together, I've lived with him for half of my life." I saw as tears began to form in her eyes. 

"Hey," I said, wrapping an arm around her. "It'll be okay. I promise. He'll get the hang of it. Not everyone can pick it up right off the bat, he just needs to practice a little more," I told her, trying to be reassuring. She leaned her head on my shoulder, letting out a breath as though she had been holding it. Wiping her face with the back of her hand, I felt her become less tense.

"You're right," She mumbled, sitting up. "Thanks, Selene. It means a lot to me." I smiled and nodded, getting up off the bed as she laid back on her mattress. I walked back over to my bed, laying on it and covering myself with the blanket. I looked over noticing that Annie was already asleep, her back to me. 

I closed my eyes, letting myself fall asleep. When I began to dream, I dreamt of titans.


	6. Training Pt. 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi guys! Before you begin to read this chapter, I wanted to clarify a few things.
> 
> So, I know that in the manga/anime, the Warriors are 12 when they break the wall, while the other cadets (Eren, Mikasa, Armin, Marco, Jean, Sasha, etc) are 10. Two years pass and they all become cadets, meaning the Warriors were 14 and the others were 12. 
> 
> I am personally not comfortable writing my fanfic with the characters are so young, so I will be altering their ages just a tiny bit. In my fanfic, when the Warriors broke the wall, EVERYONE was 14. That means they are currently 16 while they are cadets for the 104th Training Corps. 
> 
> I will also be skipping ahead 2 years (just like the anime does) to progress the timeline. That means when the time skips, everyone is 18 and therefore OF AGE. It is very important that this is noted. 
> 
> As always, thank you so much for reading my fanfic :)

Jolting out of sleep in a cold sweat, my breathing was fast and rapid. I sat up quickly, eyes filled with tears and I heaved in a panic. My dream had been horrific- reliving the day that Marcel got eaten, the titan with the beady brown eyes eating one of my best friends right in front of me. 

In a second, Annie was up and sitting with me in my bed, wrapping her arms around me as I continued to hyperventilate. 

"Sh," Annie shushed me, rubbing my back with her hand. "It's okay." She whispered. "We're safe, and it's going to be alright. We're safe." Annie repeated, assuring me as tears fell down my face.

"Marcel-" I managed to choke out before letting out a soft cry. The freckled girl, Ymir, whose bunk was on the other side of me, sat up, looking over at us. "I-I'm sorry," I stuttered, looking over at her. "I didn't mean to wake you up-" Ymir held her hand up to stop me.

"It's alright." She said quietly. "Is everything okay? I overheard you talking about your village to Mina the other day. Was it a dream about that?" 

Silently, I nodded, unable to speak from the pain I felt in my chest. 

"We had a friend. Marcel. A titan ate him right in front of us." Annie said for me, still rubbing my back. "Selene and Marcel were really close. She has these dreams sometimes. But she'll be okay."

Ymir nodded, laying down in her bed. "Sometimes, I have horrible dreams too." She replied, but didn't elaborate. Instead, she rolled over to go back to sleep.

I laid back down and Annie stayed with me in my bunk, rubbing my back until we both were able to fall asleep again. I awoke to the sun shining through the windows and Shadis banging on the door to our barracks, waking us up for another day of training. Annie and I climbed out of my bed, and I woke Sasha again as everyone was getting ready for the day. When we all got outside again, it was time to practice ODM gear again.

After everyone had gotten their belts on, we began to take turns again in our groups. Finally, it was my group's turn again. Once we all clipped ourselves in, Shadis stood in front of us, looking at Eren. 

"Eren Jaeger. Are you ready?" The drill instructor questioned. 

The black haired boy stared fiercely at Shadis. "Yes sir! I'm going to do it. I have to!" He exclaimed, determination in his voice. 

We were all slowly lifted off the ground, and this time, Mikasa, Armin and I were all steady and still straight off the bat. The three of us were looking at Eren, to see if he had finally gotten the hang of it. I reached my hand out to Mikasa and she took it, as I knew she was incredibly anxious about what the outcome of this would be.

Everyone began cheering when Eren was able to keep his balance in the ODM gear, standing up right. I heard Mikasa let out a sigh of relief and a huge grin spread across my face. The smile quickly disappeared when he suddenly seemed to lose balance, flipping upside down once again. Mikasa gripped my hand tightly, biting her lip.

We were lowered down, and Armin, Mikasa and I unclipped ourselves, walking to stand at the front of the crowd. 

"No!" Eren protested desperately. "Not yet! Once more! I can do it!" 

Shadis looked down on Eren, his emotions unclear. "Lower him."

As Eren was lowered, he landed on his knees at Shadis' feet. "I.. I'm finished." Eren whispered. 

"Wagner." The drill instructor barked. "Please exchange belts with Mr. Jaeger." 

Thomas took off his belt, giving it to Eren. He swapped them and clipped himself in again, being lifted up. We all gasped in amazement. Eren, suspended from the wires, was able to stay upright and completely still. I cheered, relieved to see that he could really do it.

"The belt was busted!" I exclaimed loudly, still cheering. "Way to go, Eren!" The crowd of cadets began complimenting Eren on his skill and cheering. I looked over at Mikasa but she was staring at Eren with a huge smile on her face.

"I did it!" Eren yelled victoriously. "I really did it! Check it out, Mikasa! I'm doing it!"

"Looks like it's not the fields for you two, after all." I said to her happily, seeing her cheeks flush pink.

Reiner, who was standing to the side of us, smiled. "It seems like things worked out for him."

Armin nodded, looking enthused and proud of his best friend. "Look, his eyes are saying 'check me out'!"

"They're not," Mikasa said, and we all turned to look at her. "His eyes are saying he doesn't have to leave me. Not anymore."

As Eren was lowered to the ground, we all surrounded him, cheering. I felt someone put both hands on my shoulders, most likely trying to navigate through the crowd of cadets. Turning around, I saw Jean, and my eyes widened. His eyes did the same as his cheeks did their usual flushing, turning a bright pink color. He lifted his hands off my shoulders quickly. 

"Oh!" He exclaimed. "S-Selene! I wasn't trying to be creepy, I just-"

"We're just trying to get through the crowd." Marco finished, flashing a smile at me. I felt myself smiling back, because Marco's smiles were just insanely contagious. "I haven't seen you for a while, how have you been?" He asked, motioning for me to follow him out of the crowd. A flustered Jean stood frozen for a second before following us out of the crowd. The three of us stood together on the outskirts of all the cadets, still celebrating Eren's victory. 

"I've been doing well! Training hasn't been so bad." I remarked. "I'm super glad that Eren was able to pull through!" 

Marco nodded happily. "Me too. Weird how the gear was busted and no one noticed, huh?" 

"Yeah," I admitted. "That does seem kind of weird, but I guess it happens sometimes. People make mistakes." Shrugging, I glanced over at the ash-brown haired boy, who was silent, cheeks still pink. I raised an eyebrow at him. "Do you have a blushing problem?"

Jean seemed dumbfounded. "Huh?" He asked. "I don't have a blushing problem, I-" He paused for a moment to think. "It's just hot out here today!" 

Marco laughing, putting a hand on Jean's shoulder. "Yeah, it's pretty hot out here today, especially with this gear on."

Shadis finally decided to speak up, probably having enough of the cadets actually being happy. "Okay, weirdos, that's enough cheering. Hand to hand combat practice, now!"

******Two Years Later******

My boots squished the mud as we trekked through the forest in the pouring rain. Keeping my head down so I didn't get water in my eyes, the pack on my back began to feel heavier than usual, no doubt from the weight of the water that it was absorbing. I sighed audibly, rolling my eyes. The fact that I had trained to become a Warrior all my life and now had to train again felt pretty unfair.

"Pick up the pace, you lead-heeled laggards!" Shadis yelled at us while riding on his horse. The cadets around me began to run and I brought my head up to make sure I didn't run into anyone in front of me, keeping the pace with my comrades around me. From behind me, I could hear Shadis chastising Armin, who had fallen behind. It seemed to be a common theme to hear the drill instructor targeting the blonde, and at this point I was honestly impressed that Armin had even decided to stay in the Training Corps. He had insane determination, however, and seemed to pull through each time.

The water began to hit my face as I ran, dripping down and collecting on my chin and the tip of my nose. I began to squint because it was so insanely difficult to see the rain was falling so hard. Just then, I sensed someone run up beside me. Looking over, I saw it was Jean.

"How do you look beautiful even in the pouring rain?" He yelled at me, trying to ensure I heard his voice over the pour of the rain. His lips curled up in his infamous smirk that I had gotten so used to seeing. He had changed so much in two years, from the blushing, shy boy to the confident and cocky Jean he was today. I thought it was attractive though- not that I'd ever admit that to him.

"Give it up, Horseface!" I replied, smirking back at him. Just then, I stumbled into someone in front of me, both of us nearly losing our footing. My eyes widen and I helped steady the person I'd just ran into, continuing to run with them. "Oh my god, I'm so sorry!" I exclaimed. 

Marco turned to look at me, laughing. "That's okay, Selene!" He said cheerily. Even after all this time, Marco was still one of my favorite people. I could always count on him to make me laugh when I needed it most. He reminded me a lot of Marcel.

I looked forward again, grinning as I saw the edge of the forest. "Almost there," I thought to myself. "Gunna come in first." Suddenly, I saw someone pass by me, giving it all they had.

"Armin?" I heard Connie say from behind, confused. My eyes widened at this, realizing that it was, in fact, Armin. 

I was gasping for air as I began to run faster, being unable to catch up with him. "Shit!" I said aloud, exasperated. 

After we had reached the end of the forest, Shadis took note of the order that we had finished in for grading. We all headed to the mess hall to eat dinner before bed, everyone starving after training so hard during the day. I sat down at a table with Sasha and Connie, who were in a heated argument about who was dumber than the other.

"I'm dumb?" Connie exclaimed, glaring at Sasha. "You're the one who tried to eat soup with a fork! Who does that?"

Sasha's eyebrows furrowed at this. "Well, you're the one who thought that there were such things as pink cows!"

Connie gasped. "You weren't supposed to tell anyone that! Where else could strawberry milk come from?"

Just then, Jean sat down across from me, rolling his eyes. "Guys, come on. You're both idiots." 

Connie and Sasha both began protesting as I let out a giggle, picking up my spoon to eat my soup. Jean let out a laugh as well, shaking his head and scooting over when Marco came to sit down at the table with us. 

"Can we just talk about how Armin actually came in first today?" Connie asked, an eyebrow raised. "Seriously, how in the hell did that happen? I thought for sure you had it, Selene."

I shrugged, laughing. "I totally could have beat him if I wanted to, but I figured with how much effort he had put in, that he deserved to finish first." Jean scoffed playfully and opened his mouth to say something before I reached my hand across the table, putting it over his mouth. "Shut it, Kirstein." His eyes widened and his cheeks turned a subtle pink. I decided to let it go, even though I totally could have picked on him for that. 

The bell rung and it was time to return to the barracks for showering and sleeping. Sasha and I walked out together as she complained about how bland the soup was. 

"Do you need to shower tonight, Sasha?" I asked, not wanting to go alone. Normally, guys and girls would shower in the morning at different times since we all shared one shower house, but I didn't want to go to sleep without showering because of how we had ran in the rain and gotten muddy. I crossed my fingers, willing her to say yes.

She yawned, stretching her arms over her head dramatically. "Nah. I'm tired." I whined as we got to the barrack door, walking in.

"Fine," I muttered, grabbing a towel, shampoo and body wash as well as my pajamas. Walking to the shower house, I noticed that no one was outside anymore, everyone in their barracks getting ready for bed. I pushed open the shower house door, walking over to a shower stall and turning on the water. Kicking off my boots and peeling my uniform off my body, I sat them outside the stall as I turned on the water, stepping inside and pulling the curtain over so the water wouldn't spill outside of the stall. Waiting a few moments for the water to warm, I stepped into it, wetting my hair that fell down to the small of my back. Closing my eyes and enjoying the feeling of the hot water enveloping my body, I took the shampoo bottle and squirted a small amount into my hand, working it into my hair.

Suddenly, the shower curtain was pulled to the side swiftly before I even had time to react. My eyes widen as I looked at the person standing in front of me, my bare body completely exposed to them.


End file.
